Hamas has announced the appointment of Yahya Sinwar as the new head of its political bureau, following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in an attack in Tehran last week.
On Saturday, Hamas initiated a broad consultation process within its leadership and advisory institutions to select a new political bureau chief after Haniyeh’s death.
According to the movement’s constitution, the Central Shura Council, comprising approximately 50 members including central political bureau members, elects the leader.
Sources from Al Arabiya/Al Hadath indicated that consultations were held in Qatar to choose Haniyeh’s successor.
It was reported that Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in Gaza, opposed Khaled Meshaal, the former leader who survived an Israeli assassination attempt in Jordan in 1997 and currently resides in Qatar, taking over the leadership.
Sources further revealed that Sinwar prefers a figure with good relations with Iran and Syria to succeed Haniyeh. The appointed leader will serve temporarily until internal elections are held within Hamas in a few months.
Haniyeh led the political bureau until his assassination. His deputy, Saleh al-Arouri, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut in January, was expected to succeed him. Al-Arouri’s position has remained vacant since his death.
Regardless of who succeeds Haniyeh, experts believe it will not affect Hamas’s conduct of its conflict against Israel in Gaza, where leaders like Yahya Sinwar operate with a significant degree of independence during hostilities.
